this storm known as sandy was devastating, not only to property and to homes, but to families, communities and neighborhoods, entire neighborhoods. our hearts are with those in places like city island, edgewater and locust, lower manhattan, staten island, coastal new jersey, fairfield county and other parts of philadelphia and other parts that were affected by this horrific storm. for many, recovery has already begun, but as they begin to piece their lives and communities back together, they need a united congress behind that effort. for others, the rebuilding has not yet begun as they wait more than two weeks for power and fuel to be restored to them. we grieve at the ultimate loss, precious men, women, and yes, children who are no longer with us as a result of this storm. lastly, we must acknowledge the constant heartfelt support from all our public servants and the firefighters and volunteer fire departments, the police departments, the national guard, fema and particularly our sanitation workers who are cleaning the mounds of sand and debris from people's homes. we continue to learn fr